InfoGuides: PSYC 223 Cognitive Psychology: Get Better Search Results

Last Updated: Mar 1, 2024 1:45 PM

Get Better Search Results

It is important to know how to use Boolean operators such as AND, OR, NOT, and keywords to find the best articles for your topic.

Do not write an entire sentence into a database's search box. Explain your topic to someone in three words or less. Multi-word terms that are a single idea count as one word, just put them in quotation marks (e.g. "attachment theory"). These are your search terms.
Search terms that represent different aspects of your topic (e.g. "attachment theory" and infants) should be entered into different search boxes when available. Otherwise, these terms can be combined using the word AND (e.g. "attachment theory" AND infants).
Search terms that are synonyms or related terms (e.g. anxiety or worry) should be entered into the same search box and combined using the word OR (e.g. anxiety OR worry). If multiple search boxes are not available, group related terms in parentheses and combine with the word OR.